KH Drabble - Washcloth
by pixelpaper
Summary: Kakuzu falls ill and Hidan surprises himself. Pre-slash Kakuzu/Hidan fluff.


_Drip_

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The old shinobi laid motionless in a body of murky water. He wasn't awake, nor way he aware of his surroundings. It was a strange sight for the onlooker currently dripping water on his partner's already soaked clothes. The younger shinobi couldn't ever remember having seen the other quite this peaceful, if it hadn't been for the steady rise and fall of his chest he would have thought him dead. He chuckled at the thought; this old miser having clawed a hold of life way past his time only to die of a mere twenty meter fall. Into water, shallow as it may be; It'd be kind of funny.

"Oi." Hidan said softly, not actually wanting to wake the older if only it'd give him more time to admire his defenseless state. Despite this he nudged him gently with his foot. No reaction.

With nervousness tickling in his stomach, he kneeled down next to his partner.  
He took the chance to observe the unconcious man's features. Maskless, jaws not clenched in barely contained rage for once, slightly parted lips, strands of hair sticking out of his headpiece and over one eye.

The Jashinist's adam's apple bobbed nervously as he dared brush the hair strand away. As his own pale fingers made contact with the Kakuzu's darker skin, he suddenly felt the heat radiate from it. Even though he didn't touch his partner often outside of battle, he knew this was way too warm. And damp. Which he had previously blamed on falling into the water, however the headpiece was dry around the face. Beads of sweat were piercing through his pores, and he suddenly noticed the flushed skin, barely evident from a few meters away, but obvious up close.

Oh.

"Geez... You should have told me, you dumb bastard." he ran his hand through his silver hair and groaned.

Two days later in a hotel room, Kakuzu had been dumped onto a futon and rolled into a blanket like it was seaweed and Kakuzu was rice.

Okay, not really, but Hidan had considered it for his own amusement, but quickly discarded the idea at the thought of Kakuzu's reaction to it once he eventually woke up.

Hidan had surprised himself in that he hadn't tried to take advantage of the situation in any way. He could easily have sacrificed his heathen partner in his weakened state and asked for a new one like Kakuzu had done numerous times, he was after all, a heathen of the worst sort.

And a grumpy bastard.

The Jashinist took another bite out of his snack and hummed thoughtfully, shifting his gaze away from the occupied futon on the other side of the room.

He was about to reach for his tea when a sharp inhale of breath and rustling cloth startled him so much he knocked over the cup, accompanying the mistake with a shrill yelp.

The deep green liquid spilled out over the table, the floor, then the cup itself escaped after it and hit the floor with a wet thud.

The two missing nin looked at each other like deer caught in headlights.

Kakuzu looked like he suddenly wanted to yell at Hidan for something, but composed himself as fast as he opened his mouth. Seeing Kakuzu in such a state of utter confusion made Hidan's day.

Every day for the rest of his life.

The cup continued to roll in circles on the floor until Hidan gingerly picked it up, all the while not breaking eye contact with his partner.

"Relax. You were sick or some shit and needed a nap, that's all." Hidan wanted to sound reassuring, but somehow came off as mocking. It was Hidan's default setting. He couldn't help it.

The older nin shot him a sharp glare. With Kakuzu's tussled hair and flushed cheeks, Hidan ended up finding it attractive rather than intimidating.

Hidan was not going to dwell on that feeling. No. Go away. Now.

While Hidan was shooing away unwanted thoughts, Kakuzu scanned their room, not seeing anything out of the ordinary (except for hidan's flailing) until his eyes stopped at the full water basin by his futon. He paused, suddenly feeling aware of the damp washcloth still clinging to his forehead. How it stuck throughout his abrupt awakening was a mystery.

He pulled it off and looked at it with an unreadable expression.

The younger nin observed in horror as he realized he'd revealed something all too sensitive through his actions, both to himself and to Kakuzu.

When the older man finally re-established eye contact with Hidan, the Jashinist was expecting anything but a curious (And surprised?) look from his partner.

There was a tense pause.

Instead of saying anything about it, Kakuzu soaked the washcloth in the basin, wrung the excessive water out of it and put it back on his forehead as he laid down on the futon again.

Hidan hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath since Kakuzu had noticed the washcloth. He exhaled nervously.

"Where did you put my cloak?" Kakuzu murmured in a raspier voice than usual.

When the other man didn't answer his question he continued; "Get my wallet and go buy me something to eat."

Though his words were bossy, he found himself noticing some warmth leaking out in his voice. He was glad his partner was a socially inept idiot, otherwise he'd be embarrassed.

"Geez, Kakuzu. You've barely been awake five minutes and you're already bossing me around." Hidan growled, but rose to his feet nonetheless and padded towards the cloak hanging by the door. "You're the worst."

After retrieving the wallet, feeling strange in doing so, he turned to the other man with a faux annoyed expression.

"What do you want to eat, dumbass?"

"No sweets."

Hidan wanted to buy sweets in pure spite, but somehow ended up with a liver based dish instead.


End file.
